American Idol

I'm posting some couch-side commentary tonight.
Anoop- M.C. Hammer look, not the sex appeal that Usher has.
Megan- Why does she always have a strained smile? And why does anyone vote for this cabaret act that she pulls every week? The "fans" that she talks about so much are the "Vote for the Worst" people.
Danny- I love how he always seems to feel what he's singing
Allison- Come on really?! That's what she's wearing? What is Simon going to say? I would be insulted if I was Gwen Stefani. Her singing was good, I just couldn't watch.
Scott- I can never remember his name. I have to say I like the hair. But the only place I imagine his album being a hit would be the adult contemporary chart. I'm starting to wonder why I watch this show when I dislike so many contestants.
Matt- I love kzoo and I love you! Hair also looking better. I like the keyboard but his voice seemed gravelly tonight.
Lil- Is it me or does she look 40 years old tonight? And I never noticed before, but she makes Ryan look tall.
Adam- I loooved him last week. This week I think he ruined my favorite song to dance to at weddings. Yech. I really hate that scream. Even Charlotte is plugging her ears.
Kris- Boy, everyone's pulling out the instruments tonight. I was really impressed by him tonight.

11 Weeks

Just shy of three months. Our Charlotte is growing up so fast. She can roll from tummy to back given proper mood and motivation. She is finding her voice and loves to use it when yelling at her toys. Her smile is very coy and can take me out of any bad mood.

She loves her evening chats with Daddy.


So big and so strong.


All dolled up for her trip to meet Isaac.


Isaac, tiny little peanut.


And for those concerned, I'm feeling better today without even taking antibiotics. It's amazing how fast the body can repair with a little guidance.

Feeling awfully achey and tired today after a busy weekend shift this morning. Measured temp at 100.2 then started piecing the symptoms together and came up with mastitis. My doc was nice enough to treat me over the phone. If the conservative suggestions don't help overnight (nursing, warm compress, and massage), I'll begin meds in the morning. What a waste of a weekend.

In my arms...

On my way to work today I listened to 105.7, sort of unusual for me, but my normal station wasn't coming in. They played Plum, "In my arms." This is a beautiful song from a mother to her child. I think I've heard the song, but I never really listened to it until today. It had me in tears.

"Your baby blues
So full of wonder
Your curly cues
Your contageous smile
And as I watch
You start to grow up
All I can do is hold you tight

Knowing clouds will rage
And storms will race in
But you will be safe in my arms
Rains will pour down
Waves will crash all around
But you will be safe in my arms"

Find all of the lyrics here.

Thanks for the great advice. Brian and I have moved our Ireland trip to a 15 year plan. For now, we'll save our loot so we can shoot zombies (Kyle you crack me up.)
We met little Isaac this weekend. He is such a cutie and makes C look like a giant! As soon as I can find a spare moment, I'll put up some pics from the weekend. Tonight I must focus on getting to bed early because the compounded lack of sleep from the last two weeks has caught up with me.

Can we afford it?

Those who have seen Suze Orman on Oprah know that she does great in-depth cost analyses to let people know whether they can afford things like being a stay-at-home mom, sending their kids to private school, having a dream wedding, or taking a vacation. I wish I could get her advice on this one. Brian was tooling around on the internet yesterday and found flights to Ireland for $700, quite a steal.
I guess I should give some background information to help you make your decision.
Before we got married, we set a 5 year plan. One of those things we hoped to do was travel to Ireland. I also promised Brian that once we were out of debt, our next vacation would be to Ireland.
Our financial situation is as follows, we have a 3 month emergency fund and are debt free except the house. We, however, need to save money towards some repairs for our roof, and I'm not certain how much that will cost. The repairs are timely, as we have several leaks. We are putting 15% towards retirement and will have Charlotte's college fund started shortly. I won't disclose our income on my blog (which Suze would want to know), but I think we do alright.
So, many would probably say - sure go ahead! But we have also wanted to remodel our bathroom since we moved in to this house, and money spent on a trip to Ireland would be at least 1/2 of what we'd need for remodeling. And in this economy, we'd be better off with at least a 6 month emergency fund. So, maybe I need to find a path to Suze and get her opinion, but for now I turn to you. How much is a couple allowed to spend on vacations without being irresponsible. Dave Ramsey didn't give us much advice on this!

Quizzes by Quibblo.com

Sunshine days

My family enjoyed our sunny weekend and I hope you all did too!

Yesterday we hung out in downtown Holland. We checked out the community garage sale. Boy did we ever get some cute outfits for Charlotte - some still with tags on them! We payed $16 and probably got 20 outfits. And I know this child probably doesn't need more clothes, but I couldn't pass up the deals. We also checked out the St. Patrick's Day Parade. Aren't you tempted to nab the candy that's thrown out for the kids?









Charlotte and I took a nap on the couch together before we went to Red Robin for dinner. I love their Bonzai burgers! We spent Sunday doing yard work and cooking/cleaning. We bought a used deep freezer this week, so now I have the perfect place to stock pile meals. Yeah!

I give free hugs

It's been a long day and I'm ready to doze off. But I just have to share this cute pic from Charlotte's "tummy time" today. She's two months now and getting sooo big. Her two month doc visit is tomorrow morning - I have to watch her get shots. Ugh!

Back to work

Maternity leave is over and I really am doing okay! I was welcomed back to work Monday as Brian dropped Charlotte to daycare. He said it was hard to leave her with strangers, but she didn't seem to mind since she slept in for another hour. They reported that she was "calm and alert" and didn't cry much at all. I was pleasantly surprised to find that I slipped right back into my routine at work and managed to remember how to operate all of the features of our computer charting system. I never called to check on Charlotte because I was too afraid I'd hear her crying in the background. If I heard that, I don't know how I'd function the rest of the day. Once I finished my work I raced to daycare as fast as I could to swoop in and get my baby back in my arms! Yesterday she stayed home with Grandma and seemed to have a great time as well. And I sure didn't mind that Grandma washed all of our laundry and vacuumed too!
Working in pediatrics, I definitely find myself with a new-found confidence when examining the children and giving advice to the parents. I also feel a lot more sympathy now when I hear infants crying (and am grateful for nursing pads). The toddler's cries still don't affect me much, but that's probably because they're usually having a temper tantrum. The "supernanny" in me doesn't stand for that.
I hope my return to work continues to go this well!

500

I have somehow made it to 500 posts. I started this blog April 25, 2006. So, as I calculate it, I average a post about every other day. I impress myself.
But sometimes I run out of ideas. Today is one of those days. The only thing I can think about today is that I just found out that my dog's favorite treat is made out of bull penis. That's right, as I type this right now, Maggie is at my feet gnawing on a bully stick. It stinks like old fishy jerky and the ends get soggy with spit. Brian thought it was some kind of tendon, but apparently that's just what marketers imply bully sticks are in order to soften the crudeness. Disgusting. Oh, and Maggie doesn't mind a good pig's ear either. But at least no one is trying to disguise those.

American Idol Talkback

Is anyone else watching this season of American Idol? Unfortunately, my TiVo clipped the last few minutes of the wild card results, but I understand Matt Giraud and Anoop Desai were picked to make a top 13. They always bend the rules, don't they? I'm, of course, very pleased Matt made it since he's a hometown boy and I've enjoyed many fun nights at Monaco Bay. Matt really earned that spot with his awesome vocals last night.

Dress rehearsal

Brian and I did a practice run this morning. In under two hours, all three of us were washed, fed, with time for me to pump (while I simultaneously ate breakfast) and Brian worked out on the Wii fit. However, Brian decided to improvise on my well thought out schedule, which caused Maggie to lose her walk. Poor Maggie puppy. We'll do better on Monday.

Change for the better

It's amazing how 8 weeks can change you.
I look at this photo, which was taken 2 days before I had Charlotte. I really can't stand this photo (no offense to the photographer). I look tired, impatient, and ironically a little lifeless.



Now, I see this.



I love the way I look. Not because I think I'm beautiful, but because I think being a mother is beautiful. I know there are people out there who could care less about having kids. I know there are people trying very hard to also become a mother, and I deeply hope they get there. Because when I see myself here I realize that I am becoming a better person. I am learning how to be more flexible and patient. I am learning how to be more selfless and dependent. I am making myself more emotionally available. And I have learned that I will never be the same again.

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday to my terrific friend Carrie! May your day be sunny and relaxing and may this year be filled with bundles of joy. You deserve everything your heart desires.

The weekend

We traveled to my parents house this weekend for an early birthday celebration for my mother. We relaxed, played with my nephew, ate plenty of good food, went wine tasting, and even saw Slumdog Millionaire since we had access to some great babysitters. (BTW - great movie!)

My nephew is a crawling machine at 10 months old. He is at such a cute age right now where he can just sit and entertain himself for the longest time, laughing at the sound of his hands slamming on the table. And if he hears you even whisper "patty cake," he grins from ear to ear and starts clapping his hands. What a cutie!